chop chillies, leave the seeds if you like it hot, leave some if you like it mildish, remove most if heat isn’t your thing

roast cardamom, cumin, coriander and pepper corns in a pan – you should hear a bit of popping and they’re ready when they’re a bit darker than when you started

cool seeds, grind in a mortar and pestle

remove coriander leaves from the stalks, chop and save for garnish

chop basil, save for garnish with the coriander

finely chop the lemon grass

clean shallots, chop, save the green bits for garnish with the coriander

add white bit of shallots, half of the garlic, ginger, coriander stems, lime zest and half of the lime juice to the mortar and pestle with the ground spice – mixt to a paste – this is your curry paste!

heat half of the oil in a deep pan

when oil is hot, add diced onions and kaffir lime leaves, turn heat down a bit, cook until onions are clearish

add garlic to the onions and lime leaves

when this is mixed thoroughly, add the curry paste

let the onion/curry paste cook for a bit until the mixture has thickened

to this mixture, add the coconut milk

chop the roo and potatoes into slightly-larger-than-bite-sized chunks

put the roo and potatoes into a slow cooker

cover the roo and potatoes with the curry mix

cook on high for three hours

when cooked, add fish sauce and lemon juice in small portions at a time until you get a flavour that you like

serve with rice, raita – garndish with the coriander, shallots and basil

Normally, I only cook roo for a short time as it tends to become quite tough when cooked too long. With this recipe – as it is slow cooked – the meat is tender and should melt in your mouth.